February 17, 2025 • 32 mins
Join us for a conversation with Alexis Motley, founder of the My Kid Plate Foundation, as she takes us on her journey from US Army veteran to a powerhouse in nutrition education and community health. Alexis wears a lot of hats—wife, mom, and dietetic internship director at Southern University—but at the heart of it all is her passion for making healthy eating accessible to everyone. What started as a simple family project during the pandemic has grown into a game-changing movement, tackling food insecurity and nutrition education head-on. Oh, and she’s got big dreams—like teaming up with Jennifer Hudson!
We’re getting into the work of the My Kid Plate Foundation, breaking down the realities of food deserts and how Alexis and her team are closing the gap with culturally relevant nutrition education, community gardens, and neighborhood refrigerators. She also doesn’t shy away from the challenges, including the need for more diversity in the dietetics field. But through it all, she shares some eye-opening stories—like how school gardens and community partnerships are changing lives.
And in the final stretch of our episode, we’re shining a light on the real impact of grassroots efforts in North Baton Rouge, Zachary, and beyond. From stocking community fridges to teaming up with the East Baton Rouge Parish Library, Alexis is proving that small steps lead to big change. Tune in to hear how you can get involved, suggest new projects, and be part of the movement toward a healthier, more connected community.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
I am Alexis Motley, the executive director of my Kid
Played Foundation.
Keep listening to Porch andParish the podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
All right, what's up, zachary?
We are back with anotherexciting episode broadcasting
from our headquarters right herein downtown Zachary.
Our team is planning contentfor the spring print issue of
Porch and Parish and we'd loveto hear from you If you're
interested in placing an ad withus in 2025 or have a fun story,
idea or event to add to thecalendar.
Reach out to editor atfortuneparishcom or give me a
(00:33):
call 225-324-9515.
Today we are joined by AlexisMotley, a Zachary resident.
Veteran of the US Army, thedietetic internship director at
Southern University, wife,mother of two and founder of my
Kid Plate Foundation, anonprofit organization that
works with families to educatechildren about healthy eating
(00:56):
and lifestyles.
I am Jen Gennaro, founder andeditor of Fortune Parish and
your host for today.
Side note, I'm also a newlyappointed board member of the my
Kid Plate Foundation.
Porch and Parish brings you thebest of Zachary and the
Development North Region throughcandid conversations every
Monday from our headquartersright here on Virginia Street.
This is Porch and Parish, thepodcast.
(01:17):
Stay tuned, we will be rightback with the lightning round.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
From the latest TikTok viral sensations to
time-tested playroom staples,Zachary Toy Store offers a wide
range of products designed todelight children of all ages.
Zachary Toy Store is located at4860 Highway 19 inside of
Funtime Pools.
Speaker 2 (01:42):
All right, so I did not send you these questions
because I wanted them to be offthe cuff.
So we are back with thelightning round.
Alexis did not receive these inadvance.
All right, what is one fruit orveggie you'd be happy to never
see again in your life?
Speaker 1 (02:02):
Probably a banana.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
What Really?
Is it like all bananas, or likemealy bananas?
What's what's?
Speaker 1 (02:11):
why we beefing.
I'm a texture person.
And it's like really mushy inthe mouth when you eat it but if
I could give up bananas.
Speaker 2 (02:19):
I would If I never had to hear my husband eat a
banana again for as long as Ilive.
I would be so great with that.
He is the loudest banana eaterhe's like a horse, I don't know.
All right.
So what is your favoritevegetable or plant-based dish
and how do you prepare it?
Speaker 1 (02:34):
So my favorite plant-based dish.
I'm a salad girl.
I like all type of salad, solike all type of lettuce.
So you know, honestly, when Imake a salad it's really I go in
the refrigerator and what's inthere, because I don't like food
waste.
So I do a lot of hodgepodgesalads.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
Okay, and do you pack one every day for lunch or do
you go out to eat?
Speaker 1 (02:54):
No, I do not.
So I'm pretty fortunate to beable to come home for lunch.
So I also make lunch every dayfor me, and if someone's home I
eat my husband or the boys, Imake lunch, but I make lunch
pretty much every day unlessthere's something on my schedule
where I can't make lunch.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Okay, so let's pretend it's cheat day and
calories aren't real.
What are you going to eat?
I?
Speaker 1 (03:17):
like a good hamburger , so do I.
I like a good hamburger.
Cheese.
I need cheese, mustard, mayo,no tomato, because I'm allergic
but I like a good pickle.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
Like yeah, my go-to.
When I was pregnant, I wouldget either a Big Mac, because
they are just so good, and then,um, a cheeseburger with extra
pickles and mustard.
Dream come true, all right.
Last question of the lightninground what is your dream?
Collaboration, like a crossover.
(03:50):
Now, I figured you could takethis in a couple of different
directions, so I just want tosee what comes to your mind
first.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
So when people ask me this all the time, oh really my
dream collaboration is to get apersonal phone call from
Jennifer Hudson to say I'mcoming on the Jennifer Hudson
show and I get to walk down theaisle and everyone's clapping me
up and everyone that herviewers, because she has a lot
of them.
Here's about my kid playfoundation and my work in the
(04:16):
community and they want to beadditional partners, but
Jennifer Hudson would be mydream collaboration.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
You answered that so much better than I even
anticipated.
So, jennifer Hudson, if you'reout there, I can connect you
with Alexis.
All right, that is it for thelightning round.
Okay, so moving into theinterview.
What inspired you to start myKid Plate Foundation, covid?
Speaker 1 (04:42):
Okay, I was home.
I was no longer just adietician, I was a teacher, I
was a school nurse, a cafeteriaworker, a janitor, a referee,
and I needed my boys who had alot of energy to do something.
I just moved to Zachary.
I had the amazing realtor namedJen who got me into Copper Mill
(05:03):
.
Speaker 2 (05:03):
I'm retired now Don't even Okay, carry on.
I'm just saying she got us intoan amazing neighborhood so we
were outside.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
But I needed them to do more than just play.
So growing up, I work with mymom and my grandfather all the
time with gardening.
Well, what they called a gardenwas really a crop.
But I said, hey, let's startdoing some things at home.
So I started growing thingsduring COVID with my boys, just
like everybody else on Instagramand Facebook and Tik TOK.
(05:34):
And so once the world was openagain, I just asked my son's
daycare how would you all liketo have a school garden or a
school garden box?
And she was like, oh my God,alexa, that would be amazing.
But who's paying for it?
I was like, okay, no problem.
So I mean, I'm alwaysbrainstorming, no matter where
(05:55):
I'm at.
So just a little funny noteabout myself I'm always talking
to myself.
I just don't answer, but I'malways talking.
But I was at the beauty salongetting my hair done and I was
at the beauty salon getting myhair done and I was just talking
about oh my goodness, I reallywant to get this garden going at
my kid's school.
I just don't know who to startasking to if they want to donate
.
And so the hairstylist at thetime she said, hey, I'll donate.
(06:17):
And she said, however much itcosts, just send me the bill.
Oh my gosh.
And I was like, okay.
So I was.
That was our first garden at myson's daycare.
And then, during the time ofcovid, there were grants out
there specifically fordietitians and their initiatives
, and I was, like you know,being a former military
dietitian, I never really neededan initiative because I was
(06:40):
trying to ensure that soldierswere fit to fight.
I was making sure our veterans,you know, was managing their
diabetes or hypertension.
So I never needed a initiativefor myself.
They had already kind of givenus what our initiatives would be
.
But this time Siggy's Yogurtshad a grant that said, whatever
initiative you are working on,submit it.
Okay, I was like, no problem.
(07:02):
So I submitted for this grant itwas a thirty thousand dollar
grant and I did receive an emailthat said, hey, this is, uh,
your first time applying.
Sometimes people have to applymultiple times, but don't give
up, you know we're veryinterested.
So I took that as okay, trynext year.
But then I received an email,maybe like two weeks later, like
saying you're one of ourfinalists, like our top 10, and
(07:23):
I was like, oh, I was just soexcited to be like okay, this is
a national brand.
This is not.
This is not just Louisianabased or Baton Rouge based.
Speaker 2 (07:32):
This is a national brand they're like international
right, aren't they like inIceland?
And did you even have like the,the structure of the framework
of your organization?
Not at all, not at all.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
All I had was an initiative that I wanted to take
part in.
So, long story short, I became.
I was like in the top three.
I was like okay, and it turnedfrom singing making the decision
and they moved it to socialmedia.
It became a social mediacampaign.
I received an email saying youneed to create a video.
I know everyone's creatingvideos on the phone and I'm.
(08:05):
I looked at my husband like youand I, we don't know what to do
with this.
So I contacted um Garrett he iswith the edge for the band at
southern and I was just like,hey, can you make me a quick
video?
And he was like no problem.
So he came, made a video, um,and I was just like I was
excited with the video, likeokay, even if I don't get the
(08:27):
grant, I can use this for futuregrants.
And the campaign went on socialmedia for maybe like a month
and I found out I was a winnerand I was like wow that's
incredible but my husband lookedat me and said what are, are we
going to do with this $30,000?
And our CPA?
He said well, I think youshould start a nonprofit.
(08:50):
I was like, well, maybe I needto research.
You know there's a lot ofnonprofits.
Maybe I'll just donate thismoney to a nonprofit.
But I didn't find a nonprofitthat was doing the things that I
wanted to focus on.
So that's how my Kid, my kidplate foundation came about.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
So tell us initially, when you did the video and when
you applied for the grant, whatwas the initial mission of my
kid plate foundation Initially?
Speaker 1 (09:15):
it was just to bring school gardens to daycare
locations and in food desertcommunity.
So I was just like well,there's a lot of daycares If you
drive around throughout thecity of Baton Rouge, in Zachary
Baker Central, there's homedaycares.
And so in my mind it was justlike if we would start teaching
kids about fruits and vegetablesat a very young age, we
(09:37):
probably could decrease theamount of picky eaters we have
and just expose them to thethings like if you grow it, you
help me prepare it.
Now you can try it.
So initially it was just likewe just want to get some gardens
throughout the city, or the, Iwould say, the capital region.
Let's just get some gardens atdaycares at the capital region,
throughout the capital region.
(09:57):
That was my baseline, that'sall I wanted to do with this
money and I didn't want it tojust sit there.
So that was it.
That was just like, hey, I justhave this small little
organization and we're justgoing to go plant a few gardens,
okay, and how has my KipleyFoundation evolved since its
inception?
Oh my goodness.
(10:18):
So it's not about gardensanymore, it's now I look at
things about food access.
So during COVID I didn'trealize how many people didn't
have access to things just assimple as fruits and vegetables.
I took for granted as amilitary dietitian, there's all
of my patients had access tomultiple grocery stores.
(10:40):
So we had a grocery store onthe base, like a commissary, and
a minimum of about three tofour grocery stores around the
base.
So I just you know you makethat assumption.
There's grocery storeseverywhere.
But when COVID happened, myeyes were really opened to see
that people didn't have thataccess.
So my Kid Plate has turned intoproviding access.
(11:02):
Of course we still do gardens.
We have our flagship gardens onSouthern University's campus at
the daycare center.
Now we're at the SouthernUniversity Laboratory School.
We're actually this weekendwe're putting one at Prescott
Academy.
So gardens go up aroundLouisiana in the name of my Kid
Play Foundation a lot, butaccess is still a problem.
(11:23):
So we fight that daily.
So, yeah, now we are focusingon community pantries, slash
refrigerators, so to increasethe access, but we just don't.
I'm just not putting things outthere and not educating.
So nutrition education with afocus on cultural nutrition is
important also.
So we focus on access,nutrition, education and
(11:45):
diversity.
And dietetics, dietetics.
So, as the dietetic internshipdirector, there's only 3% of
African Americans that areactually registered dietitians
in the United States, so we wantto increase that number.
So when I go out and speak, Ibring the dietetic interns and
let them talk about what they'redoing, what their experiences
(12:05):
are.
Most kids think when you saydietitian, you're a cafeteria
worker, that's the only thingyou can do work in a right.
And that's not true and I haveto bring it to them like, hey,
you know, at the time Drew Breeswas very popular.
I was like the Saints has adietitian, lsu Tigers have a
dietitian, you know.
So you have to let them knowthat insurance companies are
(12:27):
looking for you, hollywood'slooking for you, so dietitians
are everywhere.
So just getting people tounderstand that we need
dietitians in all facets of lifeand they, like our patients,
need to see people that looklike them.
So we want to increasediversity in dietetics with all
cultures.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
Can you share us?
Excuse me, can you share asuccess story that highlights
the impact of the foundation'swork?
Speaker 1 (12:54):
So I just told this story, jen, at a meeting,
because one of the instructorswas asking why would we want to
put refrigerators on SouthernUniversity's campus with free
food?
Like why would we do that?
Like we're competing withAirmark, that's our big company
that sells foods on campus.
(13:14):
So we have two refrigerators onSouthern University's campus
that have it's stocked withhealthy food options.
So I'm just going to talk aboutwhat we put in this week.
On every Monday we put in, westocked the refrigerator with,
we did turkey cheese sandwiches,side salads, salad dressing,
and then we on the side we haddonations from anything you can
(13:38):
think of that like arenon-perishable.
A student saw me drive up tothe intramural sports complex at
Southern University and he'sfrom Chicago, and he said to me
that he hadn't received anymoney yet from his family and
that he was still waiting on hisfinancial aid to be applied.
And having this refrigeratormade it easy for him to get food
(14:00):
at no charge and it was still ahealthy option.
Most people don't realize thatSouthern University is located
in a food desert.
Absolutely it takes about 20plus minutes to get to the
closest grocery store.
So we have to think about thestudents that are out of state.
Maybe they don't have a car.
Transportation is an issuebecause our transportation.
(14:21):
If you want to go to thegrocery store, you have to walk
off campus and cross a busyhighway to sit at the bus
station.
The bus stop, excuse me, andthen you wait for the bus to
come.
You finally get to yourdestination.
Whatever you have, you go backto the bus station to wait more.
So what might take you and I anhour could be a four hour trip
for a student just to get basicneeds Right.
(14:42):
So when that student told methat I was just like this is
bigger than you, alexis, andyou're impacting people that you
don't even know.
So that's one of our biggestsuccess stories.
But when I see kids, when I goto my kids' school and they say,
hey, we ate cabbage todaybecause we grew that in the
garden, oh cool, that reallywarmed my heart as well At the
(15:03):
schools where the gardens areinstalled.
Speaker 2 (15:06):
who continues with the maintenance Like?
Is there an education componentto it?
Speaker 1 (15:10):
Yes, so I'll just use Southern University's
laboratory school.
Their after school programwaters the garden.
They pull the weeds, and soI've partnered with Pennington
Medical Biomedical, and so theyhave a program called Grow
Healthy.
So typically schools haveteachers teach the lesson plan.
Well, I want it to be a greaterimpact, so my dietetic interns.
(15:33):
They teach the lessons, whichgives the teachers about an hour
break.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
Yes, which they all need, I'm sure.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
So they go once a month and teach the Grow Healthy
curriculum.
So once they teach that, theafter school program goes out
and they water the garden, theypick weeds and we've just
harvested right before this bigfreeze we had.
The students were so excited.
Oh, so we're actually gettingready to harvest again, right?
You know, I'm looking and I sawthe news and it said we're
having another freeze no, Ididn't see that.
Speaker 2 (16:01):
Don't tell me I don't want to know.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
Okay, so, but we're getting ready to harvest again,
but our after-school programsare taking care of it.
But we do have a big list ofvolunteers that are assigned to
a certain school and theymaintain the garden.
So we just don't leave it tothe school because teachers have
a lot on them.
Speaker 2 (16:18):
Absolutely.
They're all wearing multiplehats.
But, once the food is harvested, where does it go?
Speaker 1 (16:25):
So we, most times we do like a farmer's market, a
free market for teachers andfamily members.
Speaker 2 (16:32):
And we give it away.
The kids, the students, familymembers, yes, okay.
And then is some of it preparedin the cafeterias?
Speaker 1 (16:39):
It's not because of the CACFP program, so we're not
an actual supplier for them.
But if a parent takes it andprepares it for them, they can
have it Okay.
Speaker 2 (16:50):
So what are some of the biggest misconceptions
parents have about feeding theirkids healthy meals?
It's too expensive.
Speaker 1 (16:58):
I can't find it, they won't eat it.
So I have two boys.
Most people say, oh, I bet youthey're not picky.
Speaker 3 (17:07):
They're very picky, but there's a lot of workarounds
.
Speaker 1 (17:15):
You know we make smoothies and I throw things in
there that they're not payingattention to.
Sure, I bought them kid knivesat a very young age.
So they chop, they mince, youknow you.
They julienne and their versionof it.
So they help and prepare thosemeals and I feel like I feel
parents believe, oh, they'llnever eat their green vegetables
.
You know, research shows thatyour taste buds change over time
.
So they might not like it atthe age of two, but you try it
(17:36):
again at three or four theymight like it.
Speaker 2 (17:38):
So you have to just keep reintroducing the food,
right and how does my kid platehelp families develop
sustainable, healthy eatinghabits?
Speaker 1 (17:47):
so we provide a lot of education.
So, whatever we're growing, weprovide recipes for parents.
So, whatever.
So whatever we're growing, weprovide recipes for parents.
So whatever's in the I knowright now we have cabbage, so we
will have a recipe for cabbagelike multiple recipes for a
parent, and then we'll put thenutrition facts.
We'll put some background aboutcabbage and cultural, like
Louisiana culture for them.
So we make sure that it's justnot we're growing.
(18:10):
Education is a big piece andthe Grow Healthy curriculum has
really helped.
So Grow Healthy is just not forstudents.
This semester we will have ahealthy nutrition night at one
of our schools with Grow Healthy, and so we'll be able to
prepare some of the things,possibly from the garden, and
the parents can try what we'regrowing.
So we want parents to see whatwe're doing at school and then
(18:31):
they can take it and do it athome as well.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
I love that.
So tell us, what role doesnutrition play in a child's
ability to learn and perform inschool?
Speaker 1 (18:41):
So I always tell a parent how do you feel when you
have a headache?
Speaker 2 (18:47):
Don't talk to me.
I don't want to hear anything,you know exactly so.
Speaker 1 (18:55):
Um, I let them know that when we, when a child has a
great breakfast in the morning,they're able to be up, alert
and ready to learn, and and whenthey eat lunch or their snack
however, some schools are set upkind of differently it plays a
role in keeping them awake,alert and and ready to learn.
And you're always my boys, yourbrain won't grow if you don't
(19:16):
eat and you have to eat theright food.
So nutrition is the key.
I mean, most people feel liketheir job is the most important,
but a doctor will tell you, ifyou listen to a dietician, you
won't come and visit me as often.
Speaker 2 (19:28):
That's so true, and the older we get, the more aware
I am of how like if I'm aboutto blackout from hunger or like
low blood sugar.
you eat a little bit of proteinand it's like it's a miracle,
you know it just.
You feel so much better, orlike getting your magnesium in
and your vitamin D and C and allthat stuff.
So I totally agree and I shouldhope that my kids, um kids
(19:51):
establish that and start tolearn that very early on so that
they set those healthy eatinghabits All right.
So tell us what are someupcoming projects or initiatives
that my Kid Plate is working on?
Speaker 1 (20:03):
Our biggest initiative is now.
We are working on the communityrefrigerator slash pantries.
So we started in the NorthBaton Rouge area due to them not
having a grocery store and Iwant to expand to working with
whoever's doing the littlepantry here in Zachary so that
we can help keep that stocked aswell.
Speaker 2 (20:22):
I was thinking that I made a note.
Speaker 1 (20:24):
I want to thank the community of Zachary.
I did a program or an act wherewe did a Christmas advent
calendar in the Zacharycommunity really showed up and
supported me as the you know, asthe founder and executive
director of my kid platefoundation.
But it showed me that ifcommunity is what it takes, we
(20:44):
don't know what everybody elseis doing.
But I will have to say thecommunity of Zachary really made
a lot of donations and thestudents were very happy on
campus when they came back withthe pantries being stocked and
we also have another pantry, um,it's little zion baptist church
.
It's in uh, scotlandville aswell.
And I, when I say it, warmed myheart.
(21:05):
When, when I received a callfrom one of the gym, the zachary
crossfit gym, and said ourmembers want to help out and it
was so much food, my, I have asuv and it was filled from my
back seat, my trunk, my frontseat I just felt so blessed that
the zachary community reallysupported our advent calendar
event.
But we do have a communitygarden getting ready to go to
one of the schools.
I just felt so blessed that theZachary community really
(21:26):
supported our Advent Calendarevent.
But we do have a communitygarden getting ready to go to
one of the schools in BatonRouge.
It's the Prescott Academy.
We'll be actually doing thattomorrow.
And then we have some peoplethat want to continue to pack
the pantries because ourpantries on Southern's campus
have made the national tacklehunger list for the NFL.
So we're excited about that.
So we do have the Super Bowlcoming up.
Pantries on Southern's campushave made the national tackle
hunger list for the NFL Wow.
So we're excited about that.
So we do have the Super Bowlcoming up.
(21:46):
So my students and myself willbe headed down to New Orleans
for the taste of the NFL theSaturday before the Super Bowl,
and at that event we were ableto talk about our pantries and
my kid played as always in theforefront, because the school
maybe can't do certain thingsand when it comes to donations,
people might have questions likewhy am I donating to a school?
(22:08):
But when they donate to my KidPlate, they know it's going not
only to Southern University butthe North Baton Rouge area, the
Baker area, zachary area, it'sgoing all over Baton Rouge.
So that's the biggest things.
Coming up is the tackle hungerevent for the Super Bowl.
I'm very excited about that.
I've received a phone call, likeI think I was fanning out more
(22:29):
than I listened, but the CDC.
There was a representative fromthe CDC that called just two
days ago and was saying hey,we're looking at the national
list of taco hunger lists andyou all have a pantry and we
realize you're in a schooldesert.
I mean not a school desert, afood desert.
And how can we partner and help?
And I have, like this bigmeeting next week.
(22:50):
So people are starting torealize that, um, pantries are
needed, community refrigeratorsare needed, and if you can
donate to any communityrefrigerator, we have some
around, you know, around BatonRouge, people really need it.
It's not just people that youmight everybody's like, oh, it's
just homeless.
No, there's a lot of peoplethat might live paycheck to
paycheck and those meals come inhandy and that food comes in
(23:13):
handy.
Speaker 2 (23:14):
Now, as far as the refrigerators, how are those
paid for Like?
Are y'all looking for donationsfor actual fridges?
Speaker 1 (23:21):
Not at this time.
So the refrigerators that areon campus that we have, and the
one at the Little Zion BaptistChurch, was actually purchased
by Representative VanessaLaFleur.
She purchased the refrigeratorsand I was contacted like, hey,
we have these refrigerators andwe want to do a community
refrigerator initiative, andwhere can we put them on campus?
(23:41):
And so I started making calls.
I'm never going to turn down adonation and so I started making
phone calls and we got them oncampus.
One is actually in the buildingthat I work out of Pinky Thrift
, and then we have one at ourintramural sports complex and
then we put one at the church,the little Zion Baptist church
and as far as the food, is thatcompletely donor driven?
Speaker 2 (24:03):
Yes, and there's just no shortage of it, like you
just always seem to have enoughto stock the pantries and the
fridges At this point.
Speaker 1 (24:10):
People just make donations.
I get phone calls.
Or my husband called meyesterday and he said did you
call someone about a donation?
I was like why?
He said, well, there's a caseof walnuts and a case of pickles
outside.
So, honestly, I'm all about myfaith and I always think about
manna from heaven.
God is constantly blessing meand I feel like I want to keep
(24:32):
blessing the community.
So people are donating.
Now, we'll never stop a donation, but there are some things that
I like to tell people.
When you're donating,especially if you're just
getting it out your house, checkthe expiration date.
Please check the expirationdate.
Most people might not have canopeners.
So if you can get pop tops cansor if like if it's tuna or
chicken, get the packages Right.
(24:53):
So maybe like easy access tothose things and don't forget
about spices.
Like people forget, like justbecause it's out of a can, like
people forget, like just becauseit's out of a can, you can
still make it taste good bydonating some type of spices.
So spices are things that wereally ask for as well good
point.
Speaker 2 (25:09):
Um, okay, one more thing, all right.
So if you had unlimitedresources, what is the one thing
you would implement right now?
Speaker 1 (25:19):
every community would have a community refrigerator
that was stocked on a weeklybasis for free food.
I would want every community,especially the communities that
are in food deserts, to havecommunity refrigerators.
Speaker 2 (25:34):
How can listeners get involved or support my Kid
Plate's mission?
Speaker 1 (25:38):
So you can go to our website at wwwmykidplateorg.
You can make a donation or youcan sign up to volunteer or
receive emails or when we'regoing to have activities and
when you, you can email us aswell and just say hey, this is
my idea.
How can we collaborate?
We love collaboration.
We love to work with others inthe community, but if you want
(26:01):
to still see our refrigeratorsgoing and the manna from heaven,
make a donation.
And I do want to tell this story.
I'm going to try my best not tocry because this just happened
yesterday.
I think my husband thinks I'mcrazy you guys, because I get
crazy emails and phone calls allthe time.
But we made a simple Instagramreel.
Ok, jen, we were like Facebookpeople, so you know Instagram
(26:24):
and TikTok, they're all you know.
So one of my students made asimple Instagram reel and it was
just showing people about whereto find the pantry.
I woke up to 3,000 views.
I was like wow.
I was like 50 shares, so I waslike that's so popular.
I was like 50 shares, so I waslike that's amazing.
But, I received an email from amom.
(26:45):
She said she was afirst-generational college
student and food insecurity wasvery real in her life and she
wanted to say thank you and shesent a donation for us to be
able to provide additional meals.
I have chills right now, butpeople see what we're doing in
the community and what we'redoing for students and they are
(27:07):
tapping in.
So donations are very muchneeded.
But I thought that was just soheartfelt.
She emailed me this morning toconfirm that I received the
donation I said we did Was thatthe pickles.
Speaker 2 (27:19):
No.
Speaker 1 (27:21):
She actually sent a cash donation, but I was just so
excited that she was, um, she,she understood what we were
doing and we don't put justanything in our pantries.
I want everyone to be clear.
I put my food up there withpaneer bread or higher or whole
foods.
So the the mom said she waslooking in the refrigerator like
(27:44):
, oh my god, I wish I had thiswhen I was in college.
So we made salads and thesandwiches.
So I mean I say the same thinglike I wish I had a free
sandwich and salad when I was inschool and we didn't.
But just to receive thatdonation, just to say thank you
for what you're doing for thestudents.
It reminds me on a daily basiswhen I'm exhausted or when I'm
like, is this really my purpose?
(28:04):
That I'm really working in mypurpose and impacting the
community um, is there any sortof expiration that?
Speaker 2 (28:14):
I know we talked about not donating expired
pantry goods, but I mean you'vementioned the ham sandwiches and
everything, so how does thatwork?
Like there's a time limit there, right?
Speaker 1 (28:24):
So every Monday we prepare whatever we're going to
put in the refrigerators.
So actually today the studentswere like, hey, we want to do
Caesar chicken wraps and we wantto make put parfaits in there,
so we keep it in there onlyseven days.
So whatever is left after sevendays, we discard.
And whatever we're preparing I,we discard, and when what?
Whatever we're preparing, Iwant the all the uh, the
(28:45):
listeners to know all of mystudents and volunteers are
serve, safe, qualified.
So they know we wear hairnetsand gloves.
It's just like a restaurant.
So if you're ever on Southern'scampus and you want to see what
cafe La Cumba looks like,please send and you guys can
come visit our cafe.
But it's a full-fledgedrestaurant.
We just prepare free meals.
Now we were charging, but nowit's a different mission and we
(29:07):
are giving things away for free.
Speaker 2 (29:08):
That's amazing.
And how many meals are you guyspreparing every week?
So?
Speaker 1 (29:13):
this week alone we did about 60 sandwiches and
about 50 side salads.
So they were breaking it downwhat we're going to do for next
week.
And I would like to say thatthe members of Delta, sigma,
theta, the Baton Rouge Sigmachapter, they have supported
also because they received thegrant from Vanessa LaFleur that
would allow us to receive therefrigerators.
(29:33):
So they're also supporting themission by, you know, stocking
our non-perishable goods andthey really take care of the
little Zion Baptist church, thatrefrigerator, so they make sure
there's food in thatrefrigerator so that my students
can make sure there's food inthe refrigerators on campus.
So it's a really it's a hugecollaboration.
It's just not me.
It's a lot of people behind thescenes, but we have a lot of
(29:55):
people that are emailing andasking hey, how can we just
volunteer?
And we need volunteers.
You know you want to keepthings clean.
I always want people tounderstand it's dignity with
food dignity.
We don't want you to thinkwe're just throwing it in the
refrigerator.
Presentation is everything.
The students said that theybelieve that I grade them on
presentation and I do.
I said it's like a grocerystore.
You shop with your eyes.
So I want the students in thecommunity to walk up and say wow
(30:22):
, they really care about us.
Speaker 2 (30:23):
So yeah, and finally, if a listener out there knows
of a food desert or um, has anidea.
I'm sorry, I'm going to startthat over from the top.
I'm getting hungry.
There goes my blood sugar.
I need okay.
So if a listener out there, um,knows of a food desert that you
have not mentioned, um, do youguys take suggestions or how
(30:44):
does that work if somebody wouldlike a community garden or a
food pantry set?
Speaker 1 (30:48):
up.
You can go to our website andit says do you want more
information?
And you just type in the boxand tell us.
And I mean we can't help if wedon't know.
So send us a message or email.
And again, our website iswwwmykidplateorg and you can
send us a message.
And we love to collaborate, welove to help.
Speaker 2 (31:08):
All right.
Well, that is it for thisweek's episode of Porch and
Parish, the podcast with AlexisMotley of my Kid Plate
Foundation.
It has been a pleasure to haveyou here today.
If you would like to get intouch with Alexis or volunteer
with my Kid Plate Foundation,reach out to her at
wwwmykidplateorg.
Is that right?
(31:28):
That's correct.
All right.
Huge shout out to our communitypartners, like the City of
Zachary, the East Baton RougeParish Library System and Breck
Parks, who stand with us in ourmission to make Zachary a place
where every resident feels heardand engaged.
Thanks to the generosity andsupport of our community
partners, the magazine, podcastand everything you see online is
possible and free because ofthem.
(31:48):
Remember the three T's thatmake up quality of life Pick up
trash when you see it, fostertechnology at any expense and
embrace an attitude of tolerancefor diverse voices to begin to
engage everyone's talents in ourcommunity.
Those diverse voices are thecreative engines that will drive
everyone's talents in ourcommunity.
Those diverse voices are thecreative engines that will drive
the future success of oureconomy.
Have a great week, everyone.
I am Alexis Motley, the executive director of my Kid
Played Foundation.
Keep listening to Porch andParish the podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
All right, what's up, zachary?
We are back with anotherexciting episode broadcasting
from our headquarters right herein downtown Zachary.
Our team is planning contentfor the spring print issue of
Porch and Parish and we'd loveto hear from you If you're
interested in placing an ad withus in 2025 or have a fun story,
idea or event to add to thecalendar.
Reach out to editor atfortuneparishcom or give me a
(00:33):
call 225-324-9515.
Today we are joined by AlexisMotley, a Zachary resident.
Veteran of the US Army, thedietetic internship director at
Southern University, wife,mother of two and founder of my
Kid Plate Foundation, anonprofit organization that
works with families to educatechildren about healthy eating
(00:56):
and lifestyles.
I am Jen Gennaro, founder andeditor of Fortune Parish and
your host for today.
Side note, I'm also a newlyappointed board member of the my
Kid Plate Foundation.
Porch and Parish brings you thebest of Zachary and the
Development North Region throughcandid conversations every
Monday from our headquartersright here on Virginia Street.
This is Porch and Parish, thepodcast.
(01:17):
Stay tuned, we will be rightback with the lightning round.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
From the latest TikTok viral sensations to
time-tested playroom staples,Zachary Toy Store offers a wide
range of products designed todelight children of all ages.
Zachary Toy Store is located at4860 Highway 19 inside of
Funtime Pools.
Speaker 2 (01:42):
All right, so I did not send you these questions
because I wanted them to be offthe cuff.
So we are back with thelightning round.
Alexis did not receive these inadvance.
All right, what is one fruit orveggie you'd be happy to never
see again in your life?
Speaker 1 (02:02):
Probably a banana.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
What Really?
Is it like all bananas, or likemealy bananas?
What's what's?
Speaker 1 (02:11):
why we beefing.
I'm a texture person.
And it's like really mushy inthe mouth when you eat it but if
I could give up bananas.
Speaker 2 (02:19):
I would If I never had to hear my husband eat a
banana again for as long as Ilive.
I would be so great with that.
He is the loudest banana eaterhe's like a horse, I don't know.
All right.
So what is your favoritevegetable or plant-based dish
and how do you prepare it?
Speaker 1 (02:34):
So my favorite plant-based dish.
I'm a salad girl.
I like all type of salad, solike all type of lettuce.
So you know, honestly, when Imake a salad it's really I go in
the refrigerator and what's inthere, because I don't like food
waste.
So I do a lot of hodgepodgesalads.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
Okay, and do you pack one every day for lunch or do
you go out to eat?
Speaker 1 (02:54):
No, I do not.
So I'm pretty fortunate to beable to come home for lunch.
So I also make lunch every dayfor me, and if someone's home I
eat my husband or the boys, Imake lunch, but I make lunch
pretty much every day unlessthere's something on my schedule
where I can't make lunch.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Okay, so let's pretend it's cheat day and
calories aren't real.
What are you going to eat?
I?
Speaker 1 (03:17):
like a good hamburger , so do I.
I like a good hamburger.
Cheese.
I need cheese, mustard, mayo,no tomato, because I'm allergic
but I like a good pickle.
Speaker 2 (03:29):
Like yeah, my go-to.
When I was pregnant, I wouldget either a Big Mac, because
they are just so good, and then,um, a cheeseburger with extra
pickles and mustard.
Dream come true, all right.
Last question of the lightninground what is your dream?
Collaboration, like a crossover.
(03:50):
Now, I figured you could takethis in a couple of different
directions, so I just want tosee what comes to your mind
first.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
So when people ask me this all the time, oh really my
dream collaboration is to get apersonal phone call from
Jennifer Hudson to say I'mcoming on the Jennifer Hudson
show and I get to walk down theaisle and everyone's clapping me
up and everyone that herviewers, because she has a lot
of them.
Here's about my kid playfoundation and my work in the
(04:16):
community and they want to beadditional partners, but
Jennifer Hudson would be mydream collaboration.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
You answered that so much better than I even
anticipated.
So, jennifer Hudson, if you'reout there, I can connect you
with Alexis.
All right, that is it for thelightning round.
Okay, so moving into theinterview.
What inspired you to start myKid Plate Foundation, covid?
Speaker 1 (04:42):
Okay, I was home.
I was no longer just adietician, I was a teacher, I
was a school nurse, a cafeteriaworker, a janitor, a referee,
and I needed my boys who had alot of energy to do something.
I just moved to Zachary.
I had the amazing realtor namedJen who got me into Copper Mill
(05:03):
.
Speaker 2 (05:03):
I'm retired now Don't even Okay, carry on.
I'm just saying she got us intoan amazing neighborhood so we
were outside.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
But I needed them to do more than just play.
So growing up, I work with mymom and my grandfather all the
time with gardening.
Well, what they called a gardenwas really a crop.
But I said, hey, let's startdoing some things at home.
So I started growing thingsduring COVID with my boys, just
like everybody else on Instagramand Facebook and Tik TOK.
(05:34):
And so once the world was openagain, I just asked my son's
daycare how would you all liketo have a school garden or a
school garden box?
And she was like, oh my God,alexa, that would be amazing.
But who's paying for it?
I was like, okay, no problem.
So I mean, I'm alwaysbrainstorming, no matter where
(05:55):
I'm at.
So just a little funny noteabout myself I'm always talking
to myself.
I just don't answer, but I'malways talking.
But I was at the beauty salongetting my hair done and I was
at the beauty salon getting myhair done and I was just talking
about oh my goodness, I reallywant to get this garden going at
my kid's school.
I just don't know who to startasking to if they want to donate
.
And so the hairstylist at thetime she said, hey, I'll donate.
(06:17):
And she said, however much itcosts, just send me the bill.
Oh my gosh.
And I was like, okay.
So I was.
That was our first garden at myson's daycare.
And then, during the time ofcovid, there were grants out
there specifically fordietitians and their initiatives
, and I was, like you know,being a former military
dietitian, I never really neededan initiative because I was
(06:40):
trying to ensure that soldierswere fit to fight.
I was making sure our veterans,you know, was managing their
diabetes or hypertension.
So I never needed a initiativefor myself.
They had already kind of givenus what our initiatives would be
.
But this time Siggy's Yogurtshad a grant that said, whatever
initiative you are working on,submit it.
Okay, I was like, no problem.
(07:02):
So I submitted for this grant itwas a thirty thousand dollar
grant and I did receive an emailthat said, hey, this is, uh,
your first time applying.
Sometimes people have to applymultiple times, but don't give
up, you know we're veryinterested.
So I took that as okay, trynext year.
But then I received an email,maybe like two weeks later, like
saying you're one of ourfinalists, like our top 10, and
(07:23):
I was like, oh, I was just soexcited to be like okay, this is
a national brand.
This is not.
This is not just Louisianabased or Baton Rouge based.
Speaker 2 (07:32):
This is a national brand they're like international
right, aren't they like inIceland?
And did you even have like the,the structure of the framework
of your organization?
Not at all, not at all.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
All I had was an initiative that I wanted to take
part in.
So, long story short, I became.
I was like in the top three.
I was like okay, and it turnedfrom singing making the decision
and they moved it to socialmedia.
It became a social mediacampaign.
I received an email saying youneed to create a video.
I know everyone's creatingvideos on the phone and I'm.
(08:05):
I looked at my husband like youand I, we don't know what to do
with this.
So I contacted um Garrett he iswith the edge for the band at
southern and I was just like,hey, can you make me a quick
video?
And he was like no problem.
So he came, made a video, um,and I was just like I was
excited with the video, likeokay, even if I don't get the
(08:27):
grant, I can use this for futuregrants.
And the campaign went on socialmedia for maybe like a month
and I found out I was a winnerand I was like wow that's
incredible but my husband lookedat me and said what are, are we
going to do with this $30,000?
And our CPA?
He said well, I think youshould start a nonprofit.
(08:50):
I was like, well, maybe I needto research.
You know there's a lot ofnonprofits.
Maybe I'll just donate thismoney to a nonprofit.
But I didn't find a nonprofitthat was doing the things that I
wanted to focus on.
So that's how my Kid, my kidplate foundation came about.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
So tell us initially, when you did the video and when
you applied for the grant, whatwas the initial mission of my
kid plate foundation Initially?
Speaker 1 (09:15):
it was just to bring school gardens to daycare
locations and in food desertcommunity.
So I was just like well,there's a lot of daycares If you
drive around throughout thecity of Baton Rouge, in Zachary
Baker Central, there's homedaycares.
And so in my mind it was justlike if we would start teaching
kids about fruits and vegetablesat a very young age, we
(09:37):
probably could decrease theamount of picky eaters we have
and just expose them to thethings like if you grow it, you
help me prepare it.
Now you can try it.
So initially it was just likewe just want to get some gardens
throughout the city, or the, Iwould say, the capital region.
Let's just get some gardens atdaycares at the capital region,
throughout the capital region.
(09:57):
That was my baseline, that'sall I wanted to do with this
money and I didn't want it tojust sit there.
So that was it.
That was just like, hey, I justhave this small little
organization and we're justgoing to go plant a few gardens,
okay, and how has my KipleyFoundation evolved since its
inception?
Oh my goodness.
(10:18):
So it's not about gardensanymore, it's now I look at
things about food access.
So during COVID I didn'trealize how many people didn't
have access to things just assimple as fruits and vegetables.
I took for granted as amilitary dietitian, there's all
of my patients had access tomultiple grocery stores.
(10:40):
So we had a grocery store onthe base, like a commissary, and
a minimum of about three tofour grocery stores around the
base.
So I just you know you makethat assumption.
There's grocery storeseverywhere.
But when COVID happened, myeyes were really opened to see
that people didn't have thataccess.
So my Kid Plate has turned intoproviding access.
(11:02):
Of course we still do gardens.
We have our flagship gardens onSouthern University's campus at
the daycare center.
Now we're at the SouthernUniversity Laboratory School.
We're actually this weekendwe're putting one at Prescott
Academy.
So gardens go up aroundLouisiana in the name of my Kid
Play Foundation a lot, butaccess is still a problem.
(11:23):
So we fight that daily.
So, yeah, now we are focusingon community pantries, slash
refrigerators, so to increasethe access, but we just don't.
I'm just not putting things outthere and not educating.
So nutrition education with afocus on cultural nutrition is
important also.
So we focus on access,nutrition, education and
(11:45):
diversity.
And dietetics, dietetics.
So, as the dietetic internshipdirector, there's only 3% of
African Americans that areactually registered dietitians
in the United States, so we wantto increase that number.
So when I go out and speak, Ibring the dietetic interns and
let them talk about what they'redoing, what their experiences
(12:05):
are.
Most kids think when you saydietitian, you're a cafeteria
worker, that's the only thingyou can do work in a right.
And that's not true and I haveto bring it to them like, hey,
you know, at the time Drew Breeswas very popular.
I was like the Saints has adietitian, lsu Tigers have a
dietitian, you know.
So you have to let them knowthat insurance companies are
(12:27):
looking for you, hollywood'slooking for you, so dietitians
are everywhere.
So just getting people tounderstand that we need
dietitians in all facets of lifeand they, like our patients,
need to see people that looklike them.
So we want to increasediversity in dietetics with all
cultures.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
Can you share us?
Excuse me, can you share asuccess story that highlights
the impact of the foundation'swork?
Speaker 1 (12:54):
So I just told this story, jen, at a meeting,
because one of the instructorswas asking why would we want to
put refrigerators on SouthernUniversity's campus with free
food?
Like why would we do that?
Like we're competing withAirmark, that's our big company
that sells foods on campus.
(13:14):
So we have two refrigerators onSouthern University's campus
that have it's stocked withhealthy food options.
So I'm just going to talk aboutwhat we put in this week.
On every Monday we put in, westocked the refrigerator with,
we did turkey cheese sandwiches,side salads, salad dressing,
and then we on the side we haddonations from anything you can
(13:38):
think of that like arenon-perishable.
A student saw me drive up tothe intramural sports complex at
Southern University and he'sfrom Chicago, and he said to me
that he hadn't received anymoney yet from his family and
that he was still waiting on hisfinancial aid to be applied.
And having this refrigeratormade it easy for him to get food
(14:00):
at no charge and it was still ahealthy option.
Most people don't realize thatSouthern University is located
in a food desert.
Absolutely it takes about 20plus minutes to get to the
closest grocery store.
So we have to think about thestudents that are out of state.
Maybe they don't have a car.
Transportation is an issuebecause our transportation.
(14:21):
If you want to go to thegrocery store, you have to walk
off campus and cross a busyhighway to sit at the bus
station.
The bus stop, excuse me, andthen you wait for the bus to
come.
You finally get to yourdestination.
Whatever you have, you go backto the bus station to wait more.
So what might take you and I anhour could be a four hour trip
for a student just to get basicneeds Right.
(14:42):
So when that student told methat I was just like this is
bigger than you, alexis, andyou're impacting people that you
don't even know.
So that's one of our biggestsuccess stories.
But when I see kids, when I goto my kids' school and they say,
hey, we ate cabbage todaybecause we grew that in the
garden, oh cool, that reallywarmed my heart as well At the
(15:03):
schools where the gardens areinstalled.
Speaker 2 (15:06):
who continues with the maintenance Like?
Is there an education componentto it?
Speaker 1 (15:10):
Yes, so I'll just use Southern University's
laboratory school.
Their after school programwaters the garden.
They pull the weeds, and soI've partnered with Pennington
Medical Biomedical, and so theyhave a program called Grow
Healthy.
So typically schools haveteachers teach the lesson plan.
Well, I want it to be a greaterimpact, so my dietetic interns.
(15:33):
They teach the lessons, whichgives the teachers about an hour
break.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
Yes, which they all need, I'm sure.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
So they go once a month and teach the Grow Healthy
curriculum.
So once they teach that, theafter school program goes out
and they water the garden, theypick weeds and we've just
harvested right before this bigfreeze we had.
The students were so excited.
Oh, so we're actually gettingready to harvest again, right?
You know, I'm looking and I sawthe news and it said we're
having another freeze no, Ididn't see that.
Speaker 2 (16:01):
Don't tell me I don't want to know.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
Okay, so, but we're getting ready to harvest again,
but our after-school programsare taking care of it.
But we do have a big list ofvolunteers that are assigned to
a certain school and theymaintain the garden.
So we just don't leave it tothe school because teachers have
a lot on them.
Speaker 2 (16:18):
Absolutely.
They're all wearing multiplehats.
But, once the food is harvested, where does it go?
Speaker 1 (16:25):
So we, most times we do like a farmer's market, a
free market for teachers andfamily members.
Speaker 2 (16:32):
And we give it away.
The kids, the students, familymembers, yes, okay.
And then is some of it preparedin the cafeterias?
Speaker 1 (16:39):
It's not because of the CACFP program, so we're not
an actual supplier for them.
But if a parent takes it andprepares it for them, they can
have it Okay.
Speaker 2 (16:50):
So what are some of the biggest misconceptions
parents have about feeding theirkids healthy meals?
It's too expensive.
Speaker 1 (16:58):
I can't find it, they won't eat it.
So I have two boys.
Most people say, oh, I bet youthey're not picky.
Speaker 3 (17:07):
They're very picky, but there's a lot of workarounds
.
Speaker 1 (17:15):
You know we make smoothies and I throw things in
there that they're not payingattention to.
Sure, I bought them kid knivesat a very young age.
So they chop, they mince, youknow you.
They julienne and their versionof it.
So they help and prepare thosemeals and I feel like I feel
parents believe, oh, they'llnever eat their green vegetables
.
You know, research shows thatyour taste buds change over time
.
So they might not like it atthe age of two, but you try it
(17:36):
again at three or four theymight like it.
Speaker 2 (17:38):
So you have to just keep reintroducing the food,
right and how does my kid platehelp families develop
sustainable, healthy eatinghabits?
Speaker 1 (17:47):
so we provide a lot of education.
So, whatever we're growing, weprovide recipes for parents.
So, whatever.
So whatever we're growing, weprovide recipes for parents.
So whatever's in the I knowright now we have cabbage, so we
will have a recipe for cabbagelike multiple recipes for a
parent, and then we'll put thenutrition facts.
We'll put some background aboutcabbage and cultural, like
Louisiana culture for them.
So we make sure that it's justnot we're growing.
(18:10):
Education is a big piece andthe Grow Healthy curriculum has
really helped.
So Grow Healthy is just not forstudents.
This semester we will have ahealthy nutrition night at one
of our schools with Grow Healthy, and so we'll be able to
prepare some of the things,possibly from the garden, and
the parents can try what we'regrowing.
So we want parents to see whatwe're doing at school and then
(18:31):
they can take it and do it athome as well.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
I love that.
So tell us, what role doesnutrition play in a child's
ability to learn and perform inschool?
Speaker 1 (18:41):
So I always tell a parent how do you feel when you
have a headache?
Speaker 2 (18:47):
Don't talk to me.
I don't want to hear anything,you know exactly so.
Speaker 1 (18:55):
Um, I let them know that when we, when a child has a
great breakfast in the morning,they're able to be up, alert
and ready to learn, and and whenthey eat lunch or their snack
however, some schools are set upkind of differently it plays a
role in keeping them awake,alert and and ready to learn.
And you're always my boys, yourbrain won't grow if you don't
(19:16):
eat and you have to eat theright food.
So nutrition is the key.
I mean, most people feel liketheir job is the most important,
but a doctor will tell you, ifyou listen to a dietician, you
won't come and visit me as often.
Speaker 2 (19:28):
That's so true, and the older we get, the more aware
I am of how like if I'm aboutto blackout from hunger or like
low blood sugar.
you eat a little bit of proteinand it's like it's a miracle,
you know it just.
You feel so much better, orlike getting your magnesium in
and your vitamin D and C and allthat stuff.
So I totally agree and I shouldhope that my kids, um kids
(19:51):
establish that and start tolearn that very early on so that
they set those healthy eatinghabits All right.
So tell us what are someupcoming projects or initiatives
that my Kid Plate is working on?
Speaker 1 (20:03):
Our biggest initiative is now.
We are working on the communityrefrigerator slash pantries.
So we started in the NorthBaton Rouge area due to them not
having a grocery store and Iwant to expand to working with
whoever's doing the littlepantry here in Zachary so that
we can help keep that stocked aswell.
Speaker 2 (20:22):
I was thinking that I made a note.
Speaker 1 (20:24):
I want to thank the community of Zachary.
I did a program or an act wherewe did a Christmas advent
calendar in the Zacharycommunity really showed up and
supported me as the you know, asthe founder and executive
director of my kid platefoundation.
But it showed me that ifcommunity is what it takes, we
(20:44):
don't know what everybody elseis doing.
But I will have to say thecommunity of Zachary really made
a lot of donations and thestudents were very happy on
campus when they came back withthe pantries being stocked and
we also have another pantry, um,it's little zion baptist church
.
It's in uh, scotlandville aswell.
And I, when I say it, warmed myheart.
(21:05):
When, when I received a callfrom one of the gym, the zachary
crossfit gym, and said ourmembers want to help out and it
was so much food, my, I have asuv and it was filled from my
back seat, my trunk, my frontseat I just felt so blessed that
the zachary community reallysupported our advent calendar
event.
But we do have a communitygarden getting ready to go to
one of the schools.
I just felt so blessed that theZachary community really
(21:26):
supported our Advent Calendarevent.
But we do have a communitygarden getting ready to go to
one of the schools in BatonRouge.
It's the Prescott Academy.
We'll be actually doing thattomorrow.
And then we have some peoplethat want to continue to pack
the pantries because ourpantries on Southern's campus
have made the national tacklehunger list for the NFL.
So we're excited about that.
So we do have the Super Bowlcoming up.
Pantries on Southern's campushave made the national tackle
hunger list for the NFL Wow.
So we're excited about that.
So we do have the Super Bowlcoming up.
(21:46):
So my students and myself willbe headed down to New Orleans
for the taste of the NFL theSaturday before the Super Bowl,
and at that event we were ableto talk about our pantries and
my kid played as always in theforefront, because the school
maybe can't do certain thingsand when it comes to donations,
people might have questions likewhy am I donating to a school?
(22:08):
But when they donate to my KidPlate, they know it's going not
only to Southern University butthe North Baton Rouge area, the
Baker area, zachary area, it'sgoing all over Baton Rouge.
So that's the biggest things.
Coming up is the tackle hungerevent for the Super Bowl.
I'm very excited about that.
I've received a phone call, likeI think I was fanning out more
(22:29):
than I listened, but the CDC.
There was a representative fromthe CDC that called just two
days ago and was saying hey,we're looking at the national
list of taco hunger lists andyou all have a pantry and we
realize you're in a schooldesert.
I mean not a school desert, afood desert.
And how can we partner and help?
And I have, like this bigmeeting next week.
(22:50):
So people are starting torealize that, um, pantries are
needed, community refrigeratorsare needed, and if you can
donate to any communityrefrigerator, we have some
around, you know, around BatonRouge, people really need it.
It's not just people that youmight everybody's like, oh, it's
just homeless.
No, there's a lot of peoplethat might live paycheck to
paycheck and those meals come inhandy and that food comes in
(23:13):
handy.
Speaker 2 (23:14):
Now, as far as the refrigerators, how are those
paid for Like?
Are y'all looking for donationsfor actual fridges?
Speaker 1 (23:21):
Not at this time.
So the refrigerators that areon campus that we have, and the
one at the Little Zion BaptistChurch, was actually purchased
by Representative VanessaLaFleur.
She purchased the refrigeratorsand I was contacted like, hey,
we have these refrigerators andwe want to do a community
refrigerator initiative, andwhere can we put them on campus?
(23:41):
And so I started making calls.
I'm never going to turn down adonation and so I started making
phone calls and we got them oncampus.
One is actually in the buildingthat I work out of Pinky Thrift
, and then we have one at ourintramural sports complex and
then we put one at the church,the little Zion Baptist church
and as far as the food, is thatcompletely donor driven?
Speaker 2 (24:03):
Yes, and there's just no shortage of it, like you
just always seem to have enoughto stock the pantries and the
fridges At this point.
Speaker 1 (24:10):
People just make donations.
I get phone calls.
Or my husband called meyesterday and he said did you
call someone about a donation?
I was like why?
He said, well, there's a caseof walnuts and a case of pickles
outside.
So, honestly, I'm all about myfaith and I always think about
manna from heaven.
God is constantly blessing meand I feel like I want to keep
(24:32):
blessing the community.
So people are donating.
Now, we'll never stop a donation, but there are some things that
I like to tell people.
When you're donating,especially if you're just
getting it out your house, checkthe expiration date.
Please check the expirationdate.
Most people might not have canopeners.
So if you can get pop tops cansor if like if it's tuna or
chicken, get the packages Right.
(24:53):
So maybe like easy access tothose things and don't forget
about spices.
Like people forget, like justbecause it's out of a can, like
people forget, like just becauseit's out of a can, you can
still make it taste good bydonating some type of spices.
So spices are things that wereally ask for as well good
point.
Speaker 2 (25:09):
Um, okay, one more thing, all right.
So if you had unlimitedresources, what is the one thing
you would implement right now?
Speaker 1 (25:19):
every community would have a community refrigerator
that was stocked on a weeklybasis for free food.
I would want every community,especially the communities that
are in food deserts, to havecommunity refrigerators.
Speaker 2 (25:34):
How can listeners get involved or support my Kid
Plate's mission?
Speaker 1 (25:38):
So you can go to our website at wwwmykidplateorg.
You can make a donation or youcan sign up to volunteer or
receive emails or when we'regoing to have activities and
when you, you can email us aswell and just say hey, this is
my idea.
How can we collaborate?
We love collaboration.
We love to work with others inthe community, but if you want
(26:01):
to still see our refrigeratorsgoing and the manna from heaven,
make a donation.
And I do want to tell this story.
I'm going to try my best not tocry because this just happened
yesterday.
I think my husband thinks I'mcrazy you guys, because I get
crazy emails and phone calls allthe time.
But we made a simple Instagramreel.
Ok, jen, we were like Facebookpeople, so you know Instagram
(26:24):
and TikTok, they're all you know.
So one of my students made asimple Instagram reel and it was
just showing people about whereto find the pantry.
I woke up to 3,000 views.
I was like wow.
I was like 50 shares, so I waslike that's so popular.
I was like 50 shares, so I waslike that's amazing.
But, I received an email from amom.
(26:45):
She said she was afirst-generational college
student and food insecurity wasvery real in her life and she
wanted to say thank you and shesent a donation for us to be
able to provide additional meals.
I have chills right now, butpeople see what we're doing in
the community and what we'redoing for students and they are
(27:07):
tapping in.
So donations are very muchneeded.
But I thought that was just soheartfelt.
She emailed me this morning toconfirm that I received the
donation I said we did Was thatthe pickles.
Speaker 2 (27:19):
No.
Speaker 1 (27:21):
She actually sent a cash donation, but I was just so
excited that she was, um, she,she understood what we were
doing and we don't put justanything in our pantries.
I want everyone to be clear.
I put my food up there withpaneer bread or higher or whole
foods.
So the the mom said she waslooking in the refrigerator like
(27:44):
, oh my god, I wish I had thiswhen I was in college.
So we made salads and thesandwiches.
So I mean I say the same thinglike I wish I had a free
sandwich and salad when I was inschool and we didn't.
But just to receive thatdonation, just to say thank you
for what you're doing for thestudents.
It reminds me on a daily basiswhen I'm exhausted or when I'm
like, is this really my purpose?
(28:04):
That I'm really working in mypurpose and impacting the
community um, is there any sortof expiration that?
Speaker 2 (28:14):
I know we talked about not donating expired
pantry goods, but I mean you'vementioned the ham sandwiches and
everything, so how does thatwork?
Like there's a time limit there, right?
Speaker 1 (28:24):
So every Monday we prepare whatever we're going to
put in the refrigerators.
So actually today the studentswere like, hey, we want to do
Caesar chicken wraps and we wantto make put parfaits in there,
so we keep it in there onlyseven days.
So whatever is left after sevendays, we discard.
And whatever we're preparing I,we discard, and when what?
Whatever we're preparing, Iwant the all the uh, the
(28:45):
listeners to know all of mystudents and volunteers are
serve, safe, qualified.
So they know we wear hairnetsand gloves.
It's just like a restaurant.
So if you're ever on Southern'scampus and you want to see what
cafe La Cumba looks like,please send and you guys can
come visit our cafe.
But it's a full-fledgedrestaurant.
We just prepare free meals.
Now we were charging, but nowit's a different mission and we
(29:07):
are giving things away for free.
Speaker 2 (29:08):
That's amazing.
And how many meals are you guyspreparing every week?
So?
Speaker 1 (29:13):
this week alone we did about 60 sandwiches and
about 50 side salads.
So they were breaking it downwhat we're going to do for next
week.
And I would like to say thatthe members of Delta, sigma,
theta, the Baton Rouge Sigmachapter, they have supported
also because they received thegrant from Vanessa LaFleur that
would allow us to receive therefrigerators.
(29:33):
So they're also supporting themission by, you know, stocking
our non-perishable goods andthey really take care of the
little Zion Baptist church, thatrefrigerator, so they make sure
there's food in thatrefrigerator so that my students
can make sure there's food inthe refrigerators on campus.
So it's a really it's a hugecollaboration.
It's just not me.
It's a lot of people behind thescenes, but we have a lot of
(29:55):
people that are emailing andasking hey, how can we just
volunteer?
And we need volunteers.
You know you want to keepthings clean.
I always want people tounderstand it's dignity with
food dignity.
We don't want you to thinkwe're just throwing it in the
refrigerator.
Presentation is everything.
The students said that theybelieve that I grade them on
presentation and I do.
I said it's like a grocerystore.
You shop with your eyes.
So I want the students in thecommunity to walk up and say wow
(30:22):
, they really care about us.
Speaker 2 (30:23):
So yeah, and finally, if a listener out there knows
of a food desert or um, has anidea.
I'm sorry, I'm going to startthat over from the top.
I'm getting hungry.
There goes my blood sugar.
I need okay.
So if a listener out there, um,knows of a food desert that you
have not mentioned, um, do youguys take suggestions or how
(30:44):
does that work if somebody wouldlike a community garden or a
food pantry set?
Speaker 1 (30:48):
up.
You can go to our website andit says do you want more
information?
And you just type in the boxand tell us.
And I mean we can't help if wedon't know.
So send us a message or email.
And again, our website iswwwmykidplateorg and you can
send us a message.
And we love to collaborate, welove to help.
Speaker 2 (31:08):
All right.
Well, that is it for thisweek's episode of Porch and
Parish, the podcast with AlexisMotley of my Kid Plate
Foundation.
It has been a pleasure to haveyou here today.
If you would like to get intouch with Alexis or volunteer
with my Kid Plate Foundation,reach out to her at
wwwmykidplateorg.
Is that right?
(31:28):
That's correct.
All right.
Huge shout out to our communitypartners, like the City of
Zachary, the East Baton RougeParish Library System and Breck
Parks, who stand with us in ourmission to make Zachary a place
where every resident feels heardand engaged.
Thanks to the generosity andsupport of our community
partners, the magazine, podcastand everything you see online is
possible and free because ofthem.
(31:48):
Remember the three T's thatmake up quality of life Pick up
trash when you see it, fostertechnology at any expense and
embrace an attitude of tolerancefor diverse voices to begin to
engage everyone's talents in ourcommunity.
Those diverse voices are thecreative engines that will drive
everyone's talents in ourcommunity.
Those diverse voices are thecreative engines that will drive
the future success of oureconomy.
Have a great week, everyone.
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